General Discussion

[quote name="Kementeri" date="2022-12-06 15:48:34" ] Man, do I spend hours witing the right summary or picking the best teaser bit lol I honestly struggle with having established readers because I tend to pop into some fandom hellhole for a bit and then move on to the next, I don't know how people specialise in just one thing but I can't and making a new account for each fandom seems a bit meh... I feel it's hard sometimes to prove your fic is gonna be worth reading when the best parts of it would be spoiled if you tagged too specifically, idk if it is a universal struggle (but obviously I don't mean trigger warnings because you gotta put those out there), I think some of my stuff tanked because of that or not being able to explain too much in the summary without ruining plot twist [/quote] i can definitely believe that, picking the right selling point is quite rough! i find that presenting things in a way how i'd get myself to click on something works best. it's the quickest way to connect to a potential reader on the same wavelength rather than missing by trying to appeal to an audience that don't vibe the same vibes ( im terrible at explaining things and i apologize "orz ) the common struggle of people stopping caring as soon as an artist or writers moves on from whatever fandom was their connecting point :pensive: but just like artists can gain loyal fans that follow onto other fandoms, so can writers :o it's all about that writing style and identity. fic writers have sold me on fandoms i didn't care about just so i can read whatever they're writing of these silly fictional people ( but with context! ). either because they world build well, stay IC authentically and/ or are canon compliant, have impeccable comedic timing, have great sense for describing ambience, or whatever else little thing stands out so much that it makes their writing special, similar to a very good artstyle. it is certainly much harder for writers though, unfortunately. yeah making a new account for each new thing is the very opposite of growing a dedicated readerbase, especially if some readers from older account also like the new fandom but are alienated by the new account <D spoilers in tags or summary are my beloathed </3 i usually prefer when tags only contain genres/ characters added as chapters roll out/ trigger warnings/ whatever is important enough to mention vs memey lowkey spoilers. it IS a good way how to get folks talking. more so about tags than the fic though. focusing on the first few chapters/ paragraphs as selling point is a good cop out, so long they're written in the 'hook, line and sinker' style. works like a charm on me, lol. premise better be REALLY good if the start isn't strong. kind of how games and shows put their all in the first level/ episode because they know most folks don't go beyond that, even if the rest of the thing is incredible.

@/MrWalnut
As a writer, I definitely don't mind people not following my works from fandom to fandom. I certainly don't... tend to do that for writers unless they're friends.

Reading fics requires a LOT more context than looking at art and thinking it looks cool, unfortunately! I know personally if I don't have a passing knowledge of a fandom i'm not gonna read it bc I don't really enjoy being confused, alas!

I think it's a natural thing that just happens. It stinks to lose readers because you change fandoms, but it's part of being a writer. Your audience can't just look at something at a glance and appreciate it. They have to devote time and already know a tad of what's going on in canon.

So to me it's never any hard feelings!

(Not tagging in case this seems rude aaaa)

@/ImpossibleJedi4
no worries, i don't think it's rude in the slightest lol

while art doesn't require a lot of context, my point was more so with the fact that there can be readers ( like me ) who follow a writer into some new fandoms because they enjoy their writing style as much as someone would normally enjoy an art style. if watching some series or playing a game is all i need to enjoy hours upon hours of their excellent writing, that sure ain't gonna stop me.
not everyone does, just like not everyone will bother figuring out what the pretty picture is. i guess it got a bit lost in my ramblings but tl;dr just trying to be encouraging. i know i'm not the only one who does this either.
people unfollow artists if they are upset they no longer draw the fandom they followed for, and they don't care for the style. or they simply dislike being confused by comics and memes that mean nothing to them, pretty art or not. it works both ways. applies to all kinds of content creators, be it youtube, streaming, blogging, etc too.

but yeah i totally agree. it happens, and it is inevitable. yet it ain't impossible to pick up loyal readers so long you simply do what you enjoy confidently <:

[quote name="@MrWalnut" date="2022-12-06 20:41:04" ] @/ImpossibleJedi4 no worries, i don't think it's rude in the slightest lol while art doesn't require a lot of context, my point was more so with the fact that there can be readers ( like me ) who follow a writer into some new fandoms because they enjoy their writing style as much as someone would normally enjoy an art style. if watching some series or playing a game is all i need to enjoy hours upon hours of their excellent writing, that sure ain't gonna stop me. not everyone does, just like not everyone will bother figuring out what the pretty picture is. i guess it got a bit lost in my ramblings but tl;dr just trying to be encouraging. i know i'm not the only one who does this either. people unfollow artists if they are upset they no longer draw the fandom they followed for, and they don't care for the style. or they simply dislike being confused by comics and memes that mean nothing to them, pretty art or not. it works both ways. applies to all kinds of content creators, be it youtube, streaming, blogging, etc too. but yeah i totally agree. it happens, and it is inevitable. yet it ain't impossible to pick up loyal readers so long you simply do what you enjoy confidently <: [/quote] Okay good! Wasn't sure, so wanted to be on the safe side! I think it's really cool you do that :) I personally find it hard to into things I even am really excited for sometimes, so I am not usually one for playing a game (can take me YEARS rip) or watching something bc someone I follow did, but SOMETIMES it does line up perfectly XD I definitely follow people regardless of what they jump ship to, though! (Unless I personally find it too upsetting, but that hasn't happened yet) I probably won't read all their fics but I can still give likes and thumbs up bc I still like supporting folks I'm a fan of! :D

Hello!

I do a lot of one-shots, but I have been thinking of doing multiple chapter larger works. If anybody has tips for getting MOTIVATION for that hmu, that's usually what stops me xD

[quote name="@Bronzewing" date="2022-12-07 18:28:20" ] Hello! I do a lot of one-shots, but I have been thinking of doing multiple chapter larger works. If anybody has tips for getting MOTIVATION for that hmu, that's usually what stops me xD [/quote] I too am mostly a oneshot author (mostly series of non-chronological oneshots) who is trying to write a chapter fic! TBH I just got seized with an idea that I'm really excited about and that's helped me remain motivated!

I’ve been making a lot of stuff recently for a fandom I got into, but despite my best efforts…the characters always feel ooc when I write them? I rewatch the source material again and again to no avail. It doesn’t really help that most of the other fics available for it also write everyone wildly out of character—on top of the fact that 90% of what I’ve seen makes me very, very uncomfortable. I’ve never had to block so many people so quickly…

But then it just makes me wonder if I’m reading the characters wrong? I don’t feel like I am…

[quote name="@Mokuba" date="2022-12-07 20:05:04" ] I’ve been making a lot of stuff recently for a fandom I got into, but despite my best efforts…the characters always feel ooc when I write them? I rewatch the source material again and again to no avail. It doesn’t really help that most of the other fics available for it also write everyone wildly out of character—on top of the fact that 90% of what I’ve seen makes me very, very uncomfortable. I’ve never had to block so many people so quickly… But then it just makes me wonder if I’m reading the characters wrong? I don’t feel like I am… [/quote] Huh I'm not sure what to do about that... Is the fandom full of fairly young people, and is it a really big fandom? That can certainly skew fanfiction results, from my experience I don't have any advice for writing characters in-character, alas. The only times I've gotten really into writing fic, the things have just sort of come to me in character. Other times, I struggled, but that led to me kinda giving up :( What fandom is it?

[quote name="@ImpossibleJedi4" date="2022-12-07 20:13:38" ] [quote name="Mokuba" date="2022-12-07 20:05:04" ] I’ve been making a lot of stuff recently for a fandom I got into, but despite my best efforts…the characters always feel ooc when I write them? I rewatch the source material again and again to no avail. It doesn’t really help that most of the other fics available for it also write everyone wildly out of character—on top of the fact that 90% of what I’ve seen makes me very, very uncomfortable. I’ve never had to block so many people so quickly… But then it just makes me wonder if I’m reading the characters wrong? I don’t feel like I am… [/quote] Huh I'm not sure what to do about that... Is the fandom full of fairly young people, and is it a really big fandom? That can certainly skew fanfiction results, from my experience I don't have any advice for writing characters in-character, alas. The only times I've gotten really into writing fic, the things have just sort of come to me in character. Other times, I struggled, but that led to me kinda giving up :( What fandom is it? [/quote] The Mandela Catalogue! So yes, many young folk. Although I’m likely the same age as many of them. I’ve considered browsing some other stuff to find characters with similar personalities and see how their authors write them, but I can’t think of anyone/anything specific. Currently my only method is writing different scenarios as one-shots and trying to push through it.

I actually thought up a fanfic a few weeks ago, complete with the ending. Except I was working at the time, and just don’t feel like writing anything down right now. I just need notes, but I just don’t feel up to it. It’s maddening. [emoji=fae angry size=1]